It may sound like the new planking or Tebowing, but believe me, you don’t want to try it. It's probably one of your biggest fears if you're a cyclist.
Dooring is when a driver opens the door of his parked car in front of a cyclist without paying attention. Cyclists usually have less than a few seconds to react and end up hitting the open car door. Ouch.
One cyclist, Maxime Denoncourt, became fed up with the number of incidents he found himself in and decided to wear a GoPro-like camera on his head. That day while he was riding, he caught an incident of a female cyclist doored in NDG. The woman had to go to the hospital because of encounter with the door. Keep an eye on the left hand side of the screen.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=ITn7aiyrgTc
When the police got there, the driver apologized and went along with his day. If the same incident were to happen in traffic, the driver would’ve gotten a $52 fine but since it occurred while the car was parked, the driver avoided any repercussions.
One solution to dooring is widening bike lanes so there is more room for cyclists to maneuver and avoid being doored. But then they’re closer to cars that are actually driving. So which is worse, being hit by a car moving 20-30 km/h or a parked car? Neither are ideal, that’s for sure.
For cyclists like Maxime, dooring makes their blood boil. Drivers need to be more aware and respect cyclists as commuters. You wouldn't open your car door in the middle of moving traffic without looking. On the other hand, cyclists do not always follow traffic laws themselves. Bikers run red lights, don't stay in bike lanes, and sometimes don't pay attention to their surroundings (do you really think biking with headphones in is a good idea?).
Source - CBC News
So what should be done? Should drivers get a fine for opening their door without looking first if they’re parking or should bikers pay more attention?
